Odette
Singapore's three-star French room closed for three months at ten and came back warmer and more Asian, chilli crab in a mantou included. Book it for the occasion, and confirm the price first.
- Where: Civic District
- Price: S$60 and above
Restaurants worth planning around
Meals worth putting in the calendar, from Peranakan cooking to French dining and Singapore-led tasting menus. Settle the occasion first; the right table follows from it.
Decide what the evening is for, then compare current menus and check dietary needs before you book. A long tasting menu is the wrong answer to a quick dinner, however good it is.
Read the full guide: Dinner worth planning around.
Candlenut
The world's first Michelin-starred Peranakan restaurant, at Dempsey, where the Ah-Ma-Kase menu lets grandma decide. Bring a table big enough to share properly.
- Where: Dempsey
- Price: S$60 and above
Labyrinth
LG Han's Michelin-starred tasting menu now digs into Singapore recipes the city has half forgotten. Seafood-led, about three hours at dinner, and strict about diets.
- Where: Marina Bay
- Price: S$60 and above
Claudine
Julien Royer's French brasserie in a Dempsey chapel, named after his mother, with her stuffed cabbage on the menu. Rich, generous and built for a table that shares.
- Where: Dempsey
- Price: S$60 and above
Kotuwa
Rishi Naleendra's Sri Lankan restaurant, now at New Bahru with a proper cocktail bar. Order across the table, say your spice level early, and ignore the old address.
- Where: River Valley
- Price: S$30–60
Artichoke Pizza Parlor
Bjorn Shen's mezze favourite turned pizza parlour at New Bahru, and the menu hasn't settled since. Good for a loud shared dinner; check what it's serving first.
- Where: River Valley
- Price: Under S$30
More restaurants collections
Food centres
The answer when nobody agrees on lunch. Everyone browses, everyone orders their own, everyone meets back at one table; keep a second choice in case your stall is shut.
- 4 picks
Singapore flavours
Singapore food in three registers: a hawker meal, a heritage-led restaurant or a tasting menu. If you only do one, start at the hawker centre; the others are riffing on it.
- 5 picks
Eating in Dempsey
Dempsey is best done as one booked meal with time either side. Peranakan, French or an open kitchen, chosen for the company; don't rush the wander around it.
- 3 picks
Eating at New Bahru
New Bahru works best if you decide what you're eating before you arrive: breakfast, Sri Lankan cooking or pizza. Book the table, then wander afterwards.
- 3 picks
Tiong Bahru cafés and market
The small plan suits Tiong Bahru best: lunch at the market or a bakery stop, then a slow wander. Check which bakery branch you mean before you set off.
- 3 picks